Group hopes park bench connects seniors and youth

The Saskatoon Services for Seniors and a group of young people hope to bridge the gap between generations – and they’re doing it with a green park bench at the Fringe.

It’s located on the lawn of Victoria School on Broadway Avenue and is painted with the hashtag ElderWisdomYXE.

The initiative, launched by Saskatoon Services for Seniors and a group of young people, is hoping to bridge the gap between generations.

“It helps build a connection to worlds that they’re not a part of. For us, we’re learning about a whole other world that we can’t imagine living in. They grew up in a time that’s a lot different from our time,” said Brittany Yaganiski, organizer of the bench project and volunteer at the Senior Citizen center.

The seniors taking part come from diverse backgrounds and range in age from 75 to 101.

Seventy-eight-year-old Step Henson said he and his wife of 54 years will visit the bench Saturday afternoon.

He hopes an interested young person will join them and challenge him with questions, he said.

Yaganiski is working towards having the bench pop up at other festivals and having it become a permanent fixture in the city.

Photos

A group hopes this bench with spur connections between seniors and youth. (Saron Fanel/CTV Saskatoon)

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